38 Credit Bureaus You Need to Know About

You are probably well aware of the fact that FCRA law entitles consumers to a free copy of their credit report every year from the three major credit reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion). But you may not be aware that the law gives you the right to a FREE copy of your credit report from EVERY credit bureau, which also includes the 38 specialty consumer reporting companies.

These 38 specialty consumer reporting companies manage a much narrower range of information. For example, your banking history which may include bouncing checks, NSF transactions, or overdrafts, your rental payment history, even your insurance history which includes the filing insurance claims (auto, home, and medical).

Example:

A Bank would check your report from a company like Chex Systems, which maintains banking data on checking and savings accounts. The bank would find out if you have a tendency to bounce checks or overdraft your bank accounts before deciding whether to open a new checking account for you.

A landlord would pull your report from a service like CoreLogic SafeRent, which maintains rental history data about tenants including information regarding any legal actions and court judgments.

There is no central web site where consumers can go to get their yearly report from the specialty consumer reporting companies. You have to request it directly from each agency.

Here is a list of the Specialty Consumer Reporting Agencies:
(We will update this page with contact information for all 38 bureaus so keep checking back.)